Being a perfectionist is destructive to your self-esteem, general wellbeing and mental health. It can easily be confused with having high standards, however, they are not the same. High standards can be healthy, productive and good for your self-esteem. A perfectionist though will have standards that are unreasonable, unhealthy and counterproductive. Upon failing to reach their goals, perfectionists can start to feel down and in some cases even fall into depression. Here are a few tips to ensure that your goals don’t destroy you.
Recognise the issue
Perfectionism is a common self-esteem problem that can be hard to recognise. If you’re like many people, you might be asking, “What’s wrong with being a perfectionist?” Well, being a perfectionist can feed stress, depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. The problem with perfectionism–and the reason you’ll want to know if you possess any perfectionistic traits is that perfectionists actually achieve less and stress more than regular high achievers. Recognising the issue is your first step toward freedom, so don’t dismiss your perfectionist tendencies. Admit what is really going on and start to let go.
Set yourself time limits
Perfectionists tend to procrastinate in order to reach perfection, meaning that they often waste time and could miss deadlines too. By setting yourself time limits either by using an alarm or clock can help you allocate certain times of the day. By categorising what you need to do in the order it has to be done by can really help you to achieve what you need to, when you need to.
Reward yourself
Most of the time, we are often our own worst critic. By focusing on the positive we are able to give ourselves a break and appreciate all the hard work that we put into day to day life. By giving yourself little rewards here and there, whether it be the evening off from revision when you really need it, or a little shopping spree to treat yourself, just know that your dedication and hard work will pay off.
Think positively
A habit of a perfectionist is to overlook the things that aren’t deemed perfect. It often means missing out on the positive aspects of our life though while trying to tweak the not so positive sections. You need to embrace the negative and the positive in order to live a fulfilling and fruitful life.
These are small steps to help you beat perfectionism and move your life forward. Don’t excuse yourself from doing them because the conditions aren’t right. There is no time like the present. Do what you can, now. And when you’ve done it, keep it in perspective and be pleased with the result. Think progress, not perfectionism.
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